Lowcarbezine! 19 July 2000
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Hey, Gang --
First of all, I'd like to apologize to my AOL subscribers. Apparently
AOL limits the length of email that their users can receive as email
files, and when I put out a particularly long issue -- like last week's
-- they have to download it. This caused trouble for at least a few
people, and I'm sorry. I didn't know that AOL had this restriction --
my ISP allows me to receive email files, no matter how ridiculously
long.
Further, I can't get an answer out of AOL that I can understand,
regarding how long I can make this 'zine and still have it come through
as an email file. They keep sending me posts saying that email "splits"
at 25KB, but no matter how many times I ask, they won't explain to me
what they mean by "splits", or *exactly how long a post can be before it
must be downloaded*, which is the important question. Indeed, my
experience with their service makes me glad I use a smaller, local ISP
where I can get an answer *to the question I asked*, in plain English.
On the other hand, my email program doesn't have a function that will
let me count how many KB in an issue before I send it, anyway, so I
don't know that knowing the cutoff size would help all that much.
So here's what I'm going to do: I'm simply going to cut the number of
articles in each issue. In particular, I've generally had two longish
articles at the beginning of each issue; usually "Thought For the Week"
and "Frequently Asked Question". I'm going to cut back to one main
article, and I think I won't do more than, say, three recipes a week.
Hopefully that will keep each issue short enough for the AOLers to
receive without trouble.
Anyway, it means I'll be able to make the same number of ideas for main
articles work for twice as many issues!
Hope you like the new, *slightly* shorter Lowcarbezine! Read on!
Dana
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A Recent, Heart-Felt Plea
Dana,
Have you heard about the revised Dietary Guidelines for Americans?
According to the newsletter below, I'm putting myself at risk for
"nutrition-related diseases" such as heart disease, diabetes,
hypertension, stroke, obesity and cancer if I don't
stick to the food pyramid and eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains
and less fat.
I'm 38 years old, about 10 pounds overweight, and I'm getting that
flabby arm thing. My goal is to lose the 10, firm up and then get on a
good maintenance program that I can live with, but I don't want to put
myself at risk for health problems. I've stayed on the low carb diet
for about 3 weeks because it works (I have lost weight -- feel a little
tired though) I don't have high blood pressure now and certainly don't
want my diet to cause blood pressure problems later.
I'm s-o-o-o confused... seems that every magazine I pick up has a meal
plan with lots of fruits and grains, and very little meat, cheese and
eggs...
Loretta Hawley
I know, Loretta, believe me, I know. I've said more than once that the
first month or so I was on my low carb diet, I was waiting to fall down
dead from a massive coronary! Didn't happen. Heck, it's been almost
five years (It'll be five years the day after Labor Day) and it *still*
hasn't happened. As far as anyone can tell, I'm healthy, healthy,
healthy.
Furthermore, those same folks who are telling you to eat lots of grains
today are the folks who, within recent memory, were telling you that
margarine and Crisco were better for you than butter, that eating lots
of polyunsaturated oils was a good idea, and eating eggs would give you
high cholesterol. All of these ideas have been proven very wrong -- in
the case of advocating margarine, Crisco, and polyunsaturates,
disastrously wrong -- so their advice is... shall we say, a bit suspect.
Still, as I mentioned last week, I don't know if a low carb diet *as I
am eating it* is the healthiest possible human diet. And certainly
you're all being inundated by mainstream media messages that a low fat
diet high in grains and beans is *the* healthy diet. I don't believe
that, myself. Here's a few thoughts on the whole subject:
* There is now a great deal of evidence that for many people, a diet
high in carbohydrates, even so-called "good" carbohydrates, will cause
high LDL levels and *whopping* high triglycerides. Further, there is
evidence that even in those who are not so susceptible, a diet that is
high in carbohydrates and very low in total fats can cause high levels
of VLDL (the "worst" cholesterol) and very low HDL (good cholesterol.)
* There is also a good quantity of evidence that a diet that is low in
total carbohydrates, or, less drastically, a diet with a low "glycemic
load" (perhaps some carbohydrates, but in small portions, and only those
with a low blood sugar impact) will drop triglycerides like a *rock*.
Further, it is clear that these types of diets *for many people*, lower
total cholesterol and/or LDL, while raising HDL. In particular, see the
work of Gerald Reaven, MD, out of Stanford.
* Given these two pieces of information, either we have to change our
minds about what a "heart healthy" diet is, or we have to decide that
cholesterol level, HDL/LDL ratios, and triglycerides are *not* how we're
measuring cardiovascular health. (Not as radical an idea as you might
think. I don't have the figures in front of me, but some shocking
percentage of folks who get heart attacks never had "bad" bloodwork.)
* Regarding hypertension: It is common for critics of low carbohydrate
diets to hurl the accusation, "Oh, you only lose water on a low carb
diet!" That's not true for most of us, but it is true that the fast
initial weight loss is, indeed, water weight. This is because high
blood insulin levels trigger the kidneys to retain sodium, which holds
water. That extra water increases your blood volume, so your blood
presses harder on the walls of your blood vessels. Drop those insulin
levels, and your kidneys release the excess sodium they've been hanging
onto, along with the water that accompanies it, and voila! Water weight
loss. The thing those critics never seem to admit is that this very
water weight loss is the reason that high blood pressure generally drops
like a *rock* on a low carb diet. Not invariably -- I've heard of two
cases of blood pressure going up on a low carb diet -- but very, very
commonly. Indeed, I've known a low carb diet to work for lowering blood
pressure where years and years of medication had failed.
* Regarding diabetes: To suggest that a diet that is characterized by
an inability to properly metabolize carbohydrate is best treated by
flooding the body with carbohydrate borders on the insane. I have done
a fair amount of reading in Medline, and it's pretty clear that a high
carb/low fat diet does *not* fix Type II diabetes, and that restricting
carbohydrate, while it doesn't fix the underlying problem of insulin
resistance, will dramatically improve glucose readings. (I've also heard
from way too many people who didn't have diabetes until they'd been on a
low fat/high carb diet for a while...) Indeed, more and more commonly
diabetics are (once again) being put on low carbohydrate diets; this is
true at my local hospital. This is also the advice that was given to my
father-in-law, who was diagnosed with Type II diabetes this past year.
There is some feeling that eating a great deal of saturated fat may
increase insulin resistance; if this concerns you, you certainly may
choose lean meats, and get extra fat from nuts and seeds, olives and
olive oil, avocados, and such.
* There is little question that a diet high in fat raises HDL (good
cholesterol), and especially a diet high in monounsaturated fat. I have
also seen the med journal articles detailing studies which showed that a
diet low in fat and high in carb worsened sugar control in diabetics,
but a diet high in monounsaturated fats improved sugar control. Indeed,
so far there is nary a discouraging word about monounsaturated fats,
which are found in nuts, olives, and avocados, among other sources.
(Also, interestingly, in meat fats. Fresh lard, by way of example, is
48% monounsaturates, and only 42% saturated, which is why they
hydrogenated the stuff before they put it on the grocery store shelf --
otherwise, it would be way too soft to make into blocks.) To recommend
a very low fat diet is to recommend that people limit their intake of
some of the healthiest foods we know.
* In the complicated world of nutrition, there is one point on which we
can all agree: Eat your vegetables! Five servings a day of low carb
vegetables are not only good for your health, but they're going to make
your meals a whole lot more interesting, as well. Further, if one of
the reasons for eating a low carb diet is to eat a diet similar to what
the human body evolved on, plenty of leaves, shoots and roots are a big
part of that. After all, in the prehistoric world, plants were the food
that didn't run.
* As for fruit, we have to remember that fruit has historically only
been available for a fairly short period every year; it is *not* a
year-round staple of the human diet. Further, it was nowhere near as
sweet as it is today, as virtually *all* modern fruit has been bred for
higher sugar content. Still, fruit does have valuable vitamins,
minerals, and phytochemicals. A modest intake of the low sugar fruits
on your low carb diet is a good idea. Fortuitously, the lowest sugar
fruits -- the berries and the melons, especially cantaloupe -- are some
of the highest in nutrients!
* There is no question that eating a diet high in whole grains is
healthier than eating a diet high in *refined, highly processed* grains
and *sugar*, which is what most Americans are eating. However, I have
seen little to convince me that grains, even whole grains, are essential
to good human nutrition, and much to convince me that they are a problem
for many. Among other things, they are among the most highly allergenic
of foods, and gluten, found in wheat, rye, and oats, is a problem for
many. Further, there is no nutrient grains offer that cannot be found
elsewhere in a well-constructed low carbohydrate diet.
* The evidence is rapidly piling up that a low fat diet is *not* the
panacea we had been promised. Just over a year ago, The New England
Journal of Medicine published the results of a review of 7 separate
studies of the effect of a low fat diet on preventing breast cancer,
with the conclusion that a low fat diet does *nothing* to lower breast
cancer risk. Indeed, the researchers found the *highest* risk of breast
cancer in the women with the lowest fat intake. The Harvard Nurses
Study, one of the largest and longest studies in history, showed the
same results -- remarkably *higher* breast cancer risk in the women with
the *lowest* fat intake. And a 1996 study Italian study in The Lancet
concluded that the Italian women with the *highest* fat intake had the
*lowest* rate of breast cancer, while the highest rate of breast cancer
was found in the women with the highest intake of starches -- those
"healthy" grains, beans, and potatoes that have been pushed on us for
twenty years now.
* For that matter, just this April two separate studies regarding a low
fat/high fiber diet and colon cancer were published in The New England
Journal of Medicine. Both studies lasted for four years, and neither
study found any protective effect whatsoever from a low fat/high fiber
diet. Let me repeat again: A low fat/high fiber diet does *NOT*
prevent colon cancer. However, a very new study coming out of the
University of British Columbia showed a strong association between a
high carbohydrate intake and colon cancer, especially in women.
* That being said, there certainly is considerable evidence that some
kinds of fats can contribute to cancer. In particular, it is clear that
a diet high in polyunsaturated fats -- safflower oil, corn oil, soy oil,
and the like -- increases one's risk of cancer. Worse are commercial
deep fat fryer fats, which have been heated to high temperatures for
long periods of time, causing truly scary levels of free radicals.
There is no reason why a low carb diet needs to be high in these fats.
There is also a fair amount of evidence that browning or charring meat
fats causes carcinogenic substances to form. If this concerns you,
you'll need to limit your grilling and other high temperature cooking of
fatty meats. On the other hand, the forms of cooking considered safest
in this regard are boiling and microwaving, and you know just how long
you're going to put up with gray meat...
* While the theory that dietary fat causes cancer remains exactly that
-- a theory -- and, I might add, in the case of breast cancer and colon
cancer, a disproven theory -- we *know* what cancers feed on once
established: glucose. Sugar. Keeping your blood glucose at reasonably
low levels may well slow cancer growth, and being in dietary ketosis may
even 'starve' cancers. Yes, studies have been done, and yes, in some
cases tumors actually regressed while the patient was in ketosis.
* Saturated fats are still controversial, and it is unclear how safe it
is to eat large quantities of saturated fats over long periods of time.
Further, it may emerge that some people are saturated fat intolerant,
just as some people are carbohydrate intolerant. It is interesting to
point out that perhaps the most dangerous of the saturated fats is
hydrogenated vegetable oil -- margarine and vegetable shortening --
which are artificially saturated. I personally am unafraid of saturated
fats from meat, eggs, and cheese -- I've even been known to use coconut
oil in cooking -- but I won't touch hydrogenated oils. However, I
wouldn't consider you an unreasonable alarmist if you decided you'd
rather skew your diet in favor of monounsaturates.
* While the old chestnut about high protein diets causing kidney damage
has been pretty thoroughly trashed, it's good to keep in mind that
eating a really huge whack of protein all at one go -- say, a 16 ounce
sirloin -- can cause an insulin release. It may be best to eat in the
60-100 gram of protein a day range -- keeping in mind that if you're in
ketosis, you need a bit for your body to create what little glucose it
needs -- and to divide that protein up into several smaller meals a day,
if possible.
* There is some concern about meat fats being the repository of various
interesting chemicals, both those which are fed to the livestock, and
those which are now, sadly, widespread in the air, water, and soil.
This appears to be a legitimate concern. You can buy organically raised
meat to sidestep those chemicals which are deliberately given to the
livestock, and you can also, if you like, choose lean cuts of
conventionally raised meat, and eat extra nuts and olive oil and such to
make up the difference.
* Obesity? *Caused* by a low carbohydrate diet? It is to laugh... ;-D
Now, regarding structuring your low carb diet not merely for weight
loss, but for health --
First, recognize that changing your eating habits is a *major, big
deal*. Many, many people would quite literally rather *die* than change
the way they eat; they do it every day. If you have a personal or
family history of diseases which have been linked to carbohydrate
intolerance/hyperinsulinemia -- obesity (especially abdominal obesity)
heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, poly cystic
ovarian syndrome, female cancers, alcoholism -- then controlling your
insulin levels is of paramount concern, and if what it takes to get you
to make that dietary change is to eat sausage for breakfast every
morning and a 12 ounce rib eye every night, I'm for it. I'm convinced
that whatever dangers those meat fats may hold are as *nothing* when
compared to the overwhelming danger of prolonged high blood insulin
levels. If you doubt me, go to
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/databases/freemedl.html , click on PubMed, and
run a search under "hyperinsulinemia". (I just did. I found 238 pages
of 20 journal references each.)
However, once you've settled into your low carbohydrate diet, gotten
over the "weirdness" of it, figured out what to eat for breakfast, lunch
and dinner, all that stuff, you may want to start optimizing your diet
for health. What might that consist of?
* Eat all the low carbohydrate vegetables you possibly can within the
carb limit that allows you to lose weight. Vary them, and eat plenty of
the ones that have the most nutrients. In other words, bag the iceberg
lettuce, and eat romaine, bibb, boston lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower,
peppers, asparagus, tomatoes (within reason), spinach, cabbage,
eggplant, kale, mushrooms, or any of the other highly nutritious
vegetables out there. This is the best way to add new flavors,
textures, and interest to your diet, too.
* If you like it, eat fish several times a week. Seafood, too. No
carbs, great protein, low in saturated fats, and it generally doesn't
get fed the interesting chemicals widely used in the animal husbandry
industry.
* Eggs are among the most nutritious foods on the planet. Don't let
anybody scare you out of eating them.
* Go easy on the processed meats -- hot dogs, ham, bacon, sausage, etc.
Not only do they virtually *always* have some sort of sugar added, but
they also usually have nitrates, which are pretty clearly carcinogenic.
If -- like some folks I know! -- your low carb diet has become extremely
bacon-dependent, you can minimize the risk from nitrates by taking a
vitamin C tablet with the meal. This helps prevent the formation of
carcinogenic nitrosamines in your stomach.
* If you're concerned about butter -- I'm not!, but if you are -- you
can soften a couple of sticks of butter and whip them with anywhere
between a half-cup and a cup of olive or peanut oil. Pour into tubs,
refrigerate, and use as you would plain butter.
* Eat about your protein requirement for the day, but not a whole lot
more -- with maybe the occasional exception for a special dinner or
something. If your schedule permits, divide that protein up into 4-6
small meals a day (this may not be practical for some of you.) to avoid
the insulin release that can come with a big protein overload. Then
make up the extra calories you need with monounsaturated *fat* -- nuts,
seeds, olives, olive oil, avocados. (The down-and-dirty way to calculate
your protein requirement for the day is to take your *healthy* weight --
*not* an anorexically thin weight -- in pounds, divide it in half, and
that's your number of protein grams for the day.) You could also add
some flax seed, in a protein shake perhaps. Very healthy fat, and tons
of fiber.
* Have some berries, or some cantaloupe! These fruits will give you the
biggest nutritional dividends without a whole lot of sugar.
I defy anyone, even the director of the USDA himself, to tell me that a
dinner of grilled salmon, asparagus, a big salad with olive oil
dressing, and a bowl of strawberries for dessert is an unhealthy meal.
(And Loretta -- if you've been on a very low carb diet, like Atkins or
Protein Power, for three weeks, and you're still a little tired, you
might try a different version of a low carb diet that allows a few more
carbs, in a controlled fashion. My Careful Carb Diet, maybe, or Sugar
Busters, or The Carbohydrate Addict's Diet, or something like that.
Bodies are different; my energy level *soared* on an Atkins/PP style
diet, and many people have that experience. But three weeks should be
long enough to know, and if you're still tired, try a slightly different
approach!)
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Dana's Vacation Alert!
There will be an issue of Lowcarbezine! next Wednesday, and then I'll be
on summer vacation for two weeks. We're going to my mom's 70th Birthday
Bash (to which I'm bringing Peanut Butter Silk Pie -- what, miss the
birthday cake? Not me!), and then to Upstate New York to go camping.
Just thought I'd let you know in advance!
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More Soy News
Oh, boy, here we go again -- more interesting news about soy. At this
point, I'm wondering how long it will take the recommendations that we
all stuff ourselves to the gills with soy to be retracted -- I'm
guessing about as long as it took for the pundits to stop pushing
margarine over butter.
Here's the deal: A study at the University of Bristol, in England,
found that mothers who ate a vegetarian diet during pregnancy had almost
*5 times* the risk of non-vegetarian mothers of giving birth to boy
babies who had hypospadias. What the heck is hypospadias? It's a
congenital deformity of the penis where the urethra -- the tube down the
middle for the urine and semen to come through -- is not long enough,
and exits the penis somewhere on the underside, rather than at the tip.
The researchers come to the conclusion that high levels of
phytoestrogens from soy products interferes with the proper development
of the male genito-urinary tract. Those are the same phytoestrogens
that we're being promised will save us from everything from fallen
arches to ingrown hair. Apparently breeding the soy plant for higher
and higher levels of potent hormones wasn't the great idea everybody
thought it was.
For the record, after looking at a number of other possible factors in
causing hypospadias, including smoking, alcohol consumption, use of the
Pill prior to pregnancy, time of conception, age of mother, age the
mother started menstruating, etc, etc, etc, only two factors other than
a vegetarian diet appeared to have an effect: taking iron supplements,
which doubled the risk, and contracting the flu within the first three
months of pregnancy, which increased the risk by a little over three
times.
One can't control when one is going to get the flu, but it appears that
avoiding soy products and iron supplements during pregnancy might be a
very good idea. If you're a low carb vegetarian would-be mom, you'll
want to eat plenty of eggs and cheese, and take a look at the book
review below. Also note that fermented soy products like miso and
tempeh have much lower levels of phytoestrogens.
(Note: Red clover is also a potent source of phytoestrogens. If you
are pregnant, and are drinking herbal teas because they seem like a
nice, safe, beverage, be aware that many of them are potent medicines,
and check the labels for red clover.)
(Another note: Every time I mention that I've cut my soy intake, I get
a number of posts asking why. I've written about this in the past, but
it's beginning to look like I'd better write about it again in the
future. So I will!)
(Yet a third note: If you're wondering why I cover the soy issue a lot
in a low carb newsletter, it's because A) soy is being pushed at the
American public, especially women, from every side; B) soy powder or
flour feature in a fair number of low carb recipes as substitutes for
regular flour, and C) low carb vegetarians can become very soy
dependent. So it seems important.)
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Cruise!!! Cruise!!! Cruise!!!
Come cruise the Caribbean with me! You know you want to!! We're going
to have whole lot of fun, learn a lot, get away from *WINTER* (which
*is* coming, you know!), get rid of the holiday stress, get the New Year
off to a *great* start, sample new low carb products, learn way-cool
breathing exercises to accelerate metabolism -- all on an outrageously
luxurious and beautiful floating resort called the Carnival Victory, the
newest, largest, and most luxurious ship in the Carnival fleet! You
have to see this ship to believe it! And we're going to Mexico, Grand
Cayman, and Jamaica! How cool is *that*?!
So come meet me! Get an autographed preview copy of my second book!
Meet new low carb pals! Knock off another five pounds! And have a
*ball*! We sail on January 7th, 2001 (You'll want to be in Miami by the
evening of the 6th -- we can arrange that, too.) for a full week!
But you want to get your reservations in *now* -- before August 5th.
Why? Because just like with airlines, you get a better rate with cruise
lines if you *book in advance*. So book *now* -- your deposit is fully
refundable through October 15th, should anything untoward happen. Check
out all the details of the cruise at
http://www.holdthetoast.com/cruise.html .
C'mon, which would you rather be doing come the second week in January?
Shoveling snow? Or sailing blue waters with me and a whole bunch of low
carb diet pals?
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Reader Review of _How I Gave Up My Low Fat Diet and Lost Forty Pounds!_
Dont let the cover fool you! This book gets 10 stars!
I bought this book and read it in 2 days. It should be a "must" have
for any low-carb dieter. Dana gives info on all the various low carb
diets out there, so you can choose which works for you. She gives you a
wealth of information that I didn't find in the Heller's book or the
Eades book. She tells you what works and what doesn't.
I almost didn't buy this book because the cover looked, well, weird.
Never judge a book by its cover! The inside flap has a wonderful before
and after shots of Dana, and she is quite pretty. The book had cute
little cartoon guys and girls that made me smile.
If you're still in doubt, read through Amazon's listing of her table of
contents. Sounds interesting, doesn't it? I almost gave up my low carb
diet in spite of the benefits because I was struggling with some things-
but Dana cleared up some things. Like I was gnashing my teeth a lot, and
Dana gave a lot of info on supplements (do not buy the store
multivitamin junk- not sufficient at all!). I gnashed my teeth because I
was not getting the correct minerals and vitamins. Read the book, find
out more!
This book is awesome! I have lost 15 lbs in 2 months and this book will
help me reach my goal, and live happily ever after. What more could you
ask for?
Amy W from MI July 4, 2000
Thanks, Amy!! And good job! (Gosh, I love these reviews. Makes me
grin like a dope all day long...)
You can read this and other reviews of _How I Gave Up My Low Fat Diet
and Lost Forty Pounds!_ at
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0966883101/lowcarbohysoluti
And you can read the first chapter of _How I Gave Up My Low Fat Diet and
Lost Forty Pounds!_ for FREE at http://www.holdthetoast.com ! You can
order the book through the order page on the website, through
Amazon.com, or -- and this is a *very good deal!* through Carb Smart, at
http://www.carbsmart.com .
If you'd like to order the book through a local bookstore, you should be
able to do so virtually anywhere in the USA -- just give them the title,
_How I Gave Up My Low Fat Diet and Lost Forty Pounds!_, and the ISBN
(0-9668831-0-1), and tell them it's available through Baker and Taylor
-- that's our wholesaler!
International readers, I'm afraid you'll have to order through the
internet, or by sending us a check or money order here at Hold the Toast
Press -- we don't have an international wholesaler yet. :-( But we've
shipped as far as Japan! We'd be happy to ship to you!
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An Interesting Email From A Reader
Hi Dana:
I am a fairly new subscriber so you may have already touched on this. My
cousin is on dialysis, and the one thing they stress to her all the
time is to eat all the protein she can eat and eat very little veggies.
In fact they tell her not to eat certain veggies that even those of us
on low carb think nothing of eating. This helped me tremendously with my
low carb diet being good for me. I was on a low carb diet years ago and
got off because I was afraid it was bad for my kidneys. Now my theory
is that if a kidney patient on dialysis is to told to eat more protein
than anything else and as much of it as she can eat then (in my humble
opinion) it couldn't possibly be bad for my healthy kidneys.
I have learned a lot about designing my own low carb diet from you.
Thanks for the input on the sweeteners last week. I also want to let
you know that I am praying for you a speedy and complete recovery from
your accident injuries.
Hug ;o)
Patricia Farrar
Thanks, Patricia! I found this post very interesting, especially in
light of the experience of my dear friend Robbie Douvres, who wrote the
forward for _How I Gave Up My Low Fat Diet and Lost Forty Pounds_. Rob
is a kidney patient whose kidney function dramatically improved when he
cut his carbs -- he's the one I originally wrote The Careful Carb diet
for. You can read Rob's story, in his own words, at
http://www.holdthetoast.com/rob.html .
(PLEASE NOTE: If you are a kidney patient currently assigned to a low
protein diet, do *NOT* read this and decide to ignore your doctor's
orders! You may very well want to discuss this information with him or
her, but I cannot recommend that you simply go against doctor's
instructions. There may be ways in which your case is different from
Rob's or Patricia's cousin's. Be smart -- if you want to experiment, be
very sure you're getting frequent medical tests, so if anything is
getting *worse*, rather than better, you'll know!!)
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CarbSmart - Smart choice for a low carb lifestyle - is proud to sponsor
Hold The Toast's Lowcarbezine! For the month of July, we are selling
Dana's book _How I Gave Up My Low Fat Diet and Lost Forty Pounds!_ for
$8.99 - that's 30% off of cover price! We have all of your favorite low
carb products on sale for at least *20% off list price*! Come visit us
at http://www.carbsmart.com .
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Book Review
I mentioned last week that I had a new low carb cookbook to review for
you, and here it is:
If you like to bake even a little, tiny bit, OR if you don't really much
like to bake, but *can*, and really, really miss baked goods, you must,
*right this very minute*, order _Baking Low Carb_, by Diana Lee.
I've only made two recipes out of this book so far, and I'm already
very, very pleased. The Peanut Butter Brownies I made came out with the
chocolate brownie layer actually *tasting* like a brownie! (The peanut
butter layer was nice, too.) The Sweet Zucchini Bread is very nice, too
(although I might add a little nutmeg along with the cinnamon, next
time) -- moist and cinnamony.
It has occurred to me that there are a number of tough low carb diet
situations that these recipes could get you out of:
* You never were crazy about eggs for breakfast, or sausage or ham,
either. In fact, you *really* miss just having a cup of coffee and a
muffin. This book is *perfect* for you -- you can have a Lemon Poppy
Seed Muffin (way up on my list of recipes to try) with 9 grams of
protein, and only 3.5 g of usable carbs, or a Nut Muffin with 11 g of
protein and 3 g of carb, or an Orange Muffin with 11 g of protein and 3
g of carb! (Me, I'm going to order some more no-carb chocolate chips
and make Chocolate Chip Orange Muffins, which were always my favorite!)
Or instead, make one of the many coffee cakes or tea breads in this
book, and have a slice for breakfast! Furthermore, if you bake these on
your day off, there's breakfast for the week all ready and waiting for
you.
* You're a low carb vegetarian, or just a low carber who's never been
all that crazy about meat, and you're looking for a way to get more
protein without adding more soy to your diet.
* You're tired of snacking on eggs and cheese and nuts and seeds and
chicken wings. I have rediscovered the pleasure of having a little
slice of something with a little butter in the late afternoon, or just
before bed. It really *is* quite nice!
* You're going to a party/having a party and you want to have a good
dessert to take along/have there that *you* can eat without torpedoing
your diet.
* You're beginning to despair of ever getting any sort of protein into
your children, or you're hoping to wean them away from sugar.
* You're really enjoying the summer's crop of berries (a low sugar
fruit!), but wish you could have a Shortcake under them, since you know
you can have whipped cream on top of them!
If you weren't much of a baker before going low carb, you may want to
have one of those encyclopedic cook books nearby for reference (_The Joy
Of Cooking_ -- the best selling cookbook ever in the English language is
a good choice. And even if you've been a baker all your life, you'll
need to go get some new ingredients -- most notably, vanilla flavored
whey protein powder, oat flour, and vital wheat gluten. I'm pleased that
these recipes depend largely on these ingredients, rather than soy
powder or flour. Since I'm trying to keep my soy intake low, this is a
very good thing for me!!
Diana Lee mentions in several recipes, "Do not over bake". Clearly,
timing is important to the success of these recipes. Be sure you have a
working oven timer. I found that my stuff tended to be a bit *under*
baked, but then, that's long been true of other things I've baked; I'm
beginning to wonder if my oven thermostat is correct. Anyway, I tried
setting my oven for 10 degrees higher than the Zucchini Bread recipe
specified, and the bake time seemed about right that way. (It did,
however, stick to the pan, despite my having sprayed it with non-stick
spray. I might use baking parchment on the bottom of the bread pan next
time. Or just be more generous with the spray.)
You will also have to refrigerate or freeze these baked goods if you
don't have enough people on hand to scarf them down right away.
Remember, they're made of good, nutritious stuff, so unlike, say, corn
muffins made from refined, degerminated corn meal, little germs and
molds of all kinds will be just *waiting* to eat them up! Me, I prefer
to eat food that will support life on a microscopic level. But that may
just be me...
One thing I noticed in _Baking Low Carb_ is that the recipes generally
don't include any salt, while most "regular" baking recipes do. The
idea that a low sodium diet is needed to prevent hypertension has pretty
much been discarded; I'm going to try adding, oh, a 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon
of salt to some of these recipes. But that's simply a matter of taste.
There are *so* many recipes in _Baking Low Carb_ I want to try!
Gingerbread Snack Cake. Lemon Pecan Coffee Cake. Poppy Seed Zucchini
Bread. Just plain Bread! Chocolate Sandwich Cookies. The list goes
on!
If you've been spending the kid's college fund on expensive sugar free
goodies, you want this book! If you miss baking, you want this book!
If you want to broaden your low carb diet horizons, you want this book!
So get it!
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0967998808/lowcarbohysoluti
(If you don't have a big, encyclopedic cookbook, here's the latest
edition of _The Joy Of Cooking_
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0684818701/lowcarbohysoluti )
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That's it for this week! See you next week!
Dana W. Carpender
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